Research on the Effect of Trauma on Memory

Research has shown that traumatized individuals respond by using a variety of psychological mechanisms. One of the most common means of dealing with the pain is to try and push it out of awareness. Some label the phenomenon of the process whereby the mind avoids conscious acknowledgment of traumatic experiences as dissociative amnesia . Others use terms such as repression , dissociative state , traumatic amnesia, psychogenic shock, or motivated forgetting . Semantics aside, there is near-universal scientific acceptance of the fact that the mind is capable of avoiding conscious recall of traumatic experiences.

This commentary responds to an article by Goodman et al. (2003) where 81% of adults with documented abuse during childhood reported the abuse on follow-up. This proportion that is somewhat higher than in some previously published prospective studies assessing memory for abuse. Freyd notes that many factors distinguish prospective prosecution samples (adults who were as children abused and then involved in child abuse prosecution cases) from adults who were as children abused and who were not subsequently involved in prosecution. Namely that these children were believed, protected, supported, and legitimated. Given that these should all contribute to memorability and thwart forgettability, Freyd notes that it is actually quite striking that 19% of the participants failed to disclose the abuse when interviewed later.

The Recovered Memory Archive - an Internet-based research project, directed by Professor Ross E. Cheit of the Taubman Center for Public Policy and American Institutions at Brown University. This Page lists more than 80 cases where recovered memories have been corroborated.

False and Recovered Memories in the Laboratory and Clinic: A Review of Experimental and Clinical Evidence. (2004) -- Clinical Psychology, 11, 3-28. by David H. Gleaves, Steven M. Smith, Lisa D. Butler, & David Spiegel (FULL TEXT) -- This article reviews the clinical and laboratory evidence for recovered and false memories. Available data suggest that, at least under certain circumstances, both false and recovered memories may occur. The authors suggest that the critical questions are: (a) how common is each type of memory phenomenon, (b) what factors lead to the occurrence of each (including under what conditions are each possible and/or likely to occur), and perhaps most importantly, (c) can these two types of memories be distinguished from each other? Describes laboratory analogues for both types of experiences and describes an empirical research protocol that can demonstrate both phenomena and also compare the two. Such comparisons may help to determine the causes of these phenomena, discover factors that influence the two, and hopefully reveal signature variables that could provide telltale signs differentiating false and recovered memories.

Is There a False Memory Syndrome?

Memory, Abuse, & Science: Questioning Claims about the False Memory Syndrome Epidemicby Pope, K. (1996). American Psychologist, 51, 957-974. This article examines the scientific validity of False Memory Syndrome as a diagnostic category. The author notes that psychology rests on science and that claims--no matter how popular, authoritative, or institutionalized--must be dispassionately examined in light of the empirical evidence available to support them. If psychology is a scientific discipline, then claims by false memory proponents should be subject to the same scrutiny and held to the same scientific standards as those that are routinely applied to other claims.

Crisis or Creation? A Systematic Examination of "False Memory Syndrome"by Dallam, S. J. (2001). Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 9(3 & 4), 9-36. -- This article critically examines the assumptions underlying "False Memory Syndrome" to determine whether there is sufficient empirical evidence to support it as a valid diagnostic construct. Epidemiological evidence is also examined to determine whether there is data to support its advocates' claim of a public health crisis or epidemic.

The "False Memory" Defense: Using Disinformation and Junk Science in and out of Court by Whitfield, C. L. (2001). Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 9(3 & 4). --Child sexual abuse is widespread and dissociative/traumatic amnesia for it is common. Accused, convicted and self-confessed child molesters and their advocates have crafted a strategy that tries to negate their abusive, criminal behavior, which we can call a "false memory" defense. Each of 22 of the more commonly used components of this defense is described and discussed with respect to what the science says about them.

Whether memories can be suppressed has been a controversial issue in psychology and cognitive neuroscience for decades. We found evidence that emotional memories are suppressed via two time-differentiated neural mechanisms: (1) an initial suppression by the right inferior frontal gyrus over regions supporting sensory components of the memory representation (visual cortex, thalamus), followed by (2) right medial frontal gyrus control over regions supporting multimodal and emotional components of the memory representation (hippocampus, amygdala), both of which are influenced by fronto-polar regions. These results indicate that memory suppression does occur and, at least in nonpsychiatric populations, is under the control of prefrontal regions.

U-Turn on Memory Lane - by Mike Stanton
Mike Stanton heads the investigative team at The Providence Journal-Bulletin , where he shared a 1994 Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting. He spent a year studying the recovered memory controversy and reports on what he learned.

Trauma and Dissociation in Children,The International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation recently released a DVD-set which is the recipient of 2008 APSAC Media Award.
This 3-disk training set provides information about behavior impact of trauma on children, interviewing issues and prosecution. It is accompanied by a 68 page Trainer's Guide.